Western diplomats urge Bosnia to join NATO; Serbs say 'no'

In this photo taken on Tuesday, June 14, 2016 President
of the Republic of Srpska Milorad Dodik listens to a question
during an interview to the AP in Banja Luka, Bosnia. Western
diplomats have urged Bosnian leaders to consider joining NATO,
saying it could bring security and improve people's lives. But a
Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik said "Serbs will not let Bosnia
join until the alliance resolves its differences with Russia".
(AP Photo/Radivoje Pavicic)syndication.ap.org

The ambassadors of the U.S., Britain and NATO issued a joint
statement saying, "If you want positive change ... moving toward
NATO is a great way to do it."

Ordinary Bosnians are torn over the issue, with Croats and
Bosniaks generally in favor, but Serbs, who are traditionally
pro-Russian, strongly opposed to joining the Western military
alliance.

The ambassadors said NATO is important not just for the security
it offers but also because of "rule-of-law reforms that will help
to improve the lives of ordinary citizens."

Milorad Dodik, who advocates Serb secession from Bosnia and a new
Serb country in the Balkans, told The Associated Press this week
that Bosnian Serbs will organize a referendum in their half of
the country on whether they want to join NATO and said it will
certainly result in a 'no'.

The warning comes ahead of a NATO summit in July and highlights
the difficulties the alliance will have to win over Bosnia's
Serbs, whom it bombed in 1995 to end the Bosnian war.

The peace agreement that followed the bombardment divided the
country in two autonomous regions — a Russian-backed Serb one
that opposes NATO membership and another shared by Bosniaks and
Croats that is backed by the West and favors NATO. No decision
can be made without consensus.

"The Russians and NATO are now at odds and they are playing out
their differences around the world," Dodik said, insisting that
Bosnia should "stay neutral."

"NATO officials are nervous and want to get everybody they can on
their side ... but we have to protect our own interests," he
said. "It is maybe the best to tell them to get back to us once
they end their conflicts, and then we can talk about where we
want to go."

Neutrality is not an option, according to security analyst Denis
Hadzovic, echoing the opinion of Bosniak and Croat leaders.

"I see no alternative to Bosnia's NATO membership," he said,
explaining that for small countries such as Bosnia it is
dangerous not to be part of a bigger military alliance in a world
threatened by nationalism, terrorism, the migrant crisis and the
rise of populist forces.

Continuing to argue about it can lead to Bosnia's violent
dissolution, he said, recalling that Ukraine lost a part of its
territory because of its internal dispute over EU membership.